


divine omens

by AJMinatozaki



Category: TWICE (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Angels & Demons, F/F, Heaven & Hell, Once Creative Circle
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-06
Updated: 2020-07-06
Packaged: 2021-03-04 23:28:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 14,473
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25104724
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AJMinatozaki/pseuds/AJMinatozaki
Summary: “The last of their kind shall bear the crown,And fight to the end until one is down.The good and the bad that shall unite,Will be nothing but a mere blight.For the last child of day and night,Shall endure ‘til the end of the plight.”
Relationships: Chou Tzuyu/Son Chaeyoung
Kudos: 18





	divine omens

**Author's Note:**

> This is the third work in the collection of oneshots made for Once Creative Circle's monthly project, with July's theme: Angels & Demons
> 
> *I am trying this new thing where I put links prior a scene, this directs to a video with a background music that may (or may not) help set the mood for it, so it'd be cool if you guys did play it in the background while you read.
> 
> *For the Diablo fans out there, please spare me.

****

**The First Verse : Angelus**

Her eyes take in the sight of the dimly lit room as soon as she walks past the black curtain that served as a make-shift door, separating it from the rest of the establishment.

She takes a few more relaxed steps forward, the familiar scent of the room welcomed by her senses – an unmistakable mix of musk, sage and ink that somehow makes her relax more into the huge leather seat she’s situated herself in now. The glow of the neon green strip lights that hung on the corners of the ceiling, reflected against the framed canvasses on the walls – four in total, each having made up of a splendor of colors that surprisingly complimented the dark paint of the walls.

The faint hum of the vinyl player placed at the leftmost corner of the room can be heard, along with the tune of some sad gothic orchestra music that the owner must have chosen to play for the day among her expansive collection displayed on a shelf beside the machine itself, in neat horizontal rows.

With a content sigh, she runs her hands through her hair, bunching it up into a messy ponytail with her hair tie that she always wore on her wrist, before reaching down to work on her left sleeve.

“You ready?” A voice asks, the light of a single bright light bulb switching on above her as she finishes rolling up her sleeve. Pulling out the crumpled sheet of paper from her jean pocket, she playfully smirks at her new company, who now sat on the stool beside her.

“Do it.”

\+ + +

Tzuyu glances at her silver band watch as she tapped her feet impatiently against the tiled flooring beneath her. Checking her phone, she feels disappointed with the lack (more like absence) of response from the other and they were both damn near late for their shared class for the day.

She tucks a stray strand of her wine-colored hair behind her ears, readjusting her quaintly cut bangs in the process, and was about to make a move to enter the room when she hears the quick padding of two feet from behind her, accompanied by labored breaths and wheezing that finally slows down as soon as its source slides to a halt opposite her.

“I *wheeze* AM SO *wheeze* SORRY!” Son Chaeyoung holds a hand up as if asking for Tzuyu to wait for her to catch her breath – her right hand leaning on the wall and effectively blocking Tzuyu from the entrance. The taller girl doesn’t respond, only pushes forward the bottle of water she bought at the vending machine a while ago out of habit.

Chaeyoung swiftly grabs the bottle and lets out an “ahh” and a relieved smile as soon as she finishes gulping down its cold contents. Tzuyu calmly pushes past the lean arm blocking her way to finally enter the room, the shorter girl immediately on her tail.

The two enter the large lecture hall just a few seconds before their professor walked in. Tzuyu had always preferred sitting in the middle section of the class but given their time of arrival, her desired seat is now occupied and they were going to have to settle for the very back; something that Chaeyoung favored the most in order to draw or sleep in peace.

The words “Religious Studies” and “Theories of Creation” written in black marker ink are plastered on the enormous white board in front of them. It makes a whole lot of sense for Tzuyu, who majors in World History, to be in this class – the opposite can be said for Chaeyoung however. The art major simply wanted to have one common class with her best friend and blindly chose an additional class to take from the taller girl’s curriculum list this semester.

The incredulous look Tzuyu shot her way didn’t deter the artist from pressing the ‘Confirm’ button on her enrollment screen, not heeding the former’s warning of the class being too serious and boring for her.

It hasn’t even been a full five minutes since the class began when Tzuyu feels something poking on her arm that was rested on the table. Glancing to her right, she sees Chaeyoung facing her – the shorter girl’s big, round eyes resembling a puppy’s and a small pout on her lips.

It was the other girl’s way of apologizing to Tzuyu who hasn’t uttered a single word since the start of the class. Chaeyoung knew the girl was never amused of her habit of being ‘fashionably late’. The latter simply offers her a tight-lipped smile and a warm, reassuring hand on her arm.

If it was any other day, Chaeyoung would have appreciated the way Tzuyu stroked her forearm with her thumb, but today, she winces at the sharp pain that hit her as soon as her best friend’s palm found its way on her.

“What is it?” With a hushed and worried tone, Tzuyu immediately retracts her hand and looks at Chaeyoung who now guiltily bit on her lower lip.

She doesn’t answer – only slowly folds up the sleeve of her moss green, plaid shirt and reveals her arm wrapped in bandages and cling wrap; a blaring sign of another new tattoo being added on Chaeyoung’s already ton of existing ones.

Shooting her a look with a raised eyebrow as if to ask ‘did you really run late just to get another tattoo?’, Chaeyoung simply grins and brings out from her pocket a crumpled sheet of paper and offers it to Tzuyu.

Sensing she really has no other choice anyway, she takes the piece of paper and carefully unfolds it. On it is a very intricate sketch of a sword; its long blade, shrouded with faint purple flames, the hilt covered with some sort of leather grips and other weird symbols engraved across its metal surface, and a thin ring that suspiciously resembled a halo behind it.

Truthfully, Tzuyu finds it beautiful. Just like any other sketch or painting of Chaeyoung’s. But given where it was drawn – a page of a notebook that was ripped hastily from its spine, it must have been made in a rush again.

Ever since Chaeyoung turned eighteen and was legally released from the orphanage with Tzuyu, she has made it a hobby to have herself tattooed. The first ones being a set of roses on her knuckles, followed by a beautifully-designed set of clouds on her right arm, and other miniature doodles and symbols that seemed to hold so much meaning for the girl.

But there are these ‘special’ occurrences when Chaeyoung would wake up in the morning or in the middle of the night, out of breath and breaking out a sweat as she grabs any paper and writing tool she can and starts to draw like a madwoman. It wasn’t like it was such a big deal to Tzuyu, with her knowing how art has been such a big part of Chaeyoung’s life as they grew up, but one day she just had to ask what it was all about.

“Do you ever get those crazy, vivid dreams and you swear you will remember them when you wake up but then you don’t?” The taller girl nods. “Yeah, it’s like that for me and I really try my best to draw what I can remember as soon as I wake up.” Chaeyoung shrugs.

“But why tattoo them on yourself though?” Tzuyu asks the blazing question in her mind and she’s never going to forget the sad smile that took over Chaeyoung’s lips and the glassy look on her eyes as she responded.

“Because I always felt like I was close to home when I get those dreams. Somehow, I feel like these things are some kind of clue to who my parents and family are. I don’t know how exactly, but maybe one day I’ll get a clear enough dream and remember it – remember them. And maybe…” She trails off, the hopeful look on her face burning on Tzuyu’s memory.

Glossing her fingers over the drawing, Tzuyu releases a small smile before handing it back to Chaeyoung; looking at her best friend of a whopping seventeen years with such fondness.

With her attention now completely torn away from their professor droning on about the Endless War of Heaven and Hell, Tzuyu finds herself on a trip to memory lane of her life with the shorter girl. From her earliest memory of tiny four-year old Chaeyoung punching a boy, square on the nose for picking on quiet little Tzuyu at the orphanage and never leaving her side from that day forward, to the two of them being inseparable even as they worked their way through high school and their celebration after getting full-ride scholarships for college.

“What? Is there something on my face?” Chaeyoung mumbles, her eyes never leaving the new sketch she’s busying herself with now. Lightly shaking her head in response, Tzuyu rests her right hand on the girl’s back, her fingers mindlessly caressing the green highlights on her mostly raven-colored hair before returning her focus on the lecture.

+++

“You know, I still don’t understand why you find that class interesting.” Chaeyoung says in between chews of her sliced watermelon. “I mean no offense but that was boring as fuck.” Tzuyu chuckles against her tuna sandwich. “Well I think it’s interesting how different people in this world interpret how life is created, you know?” Chaeyoung stops mid-chew and raises a questioning eyebrow at her.

“Think about it, these people believe in the existence of omnipotent beings as the creator of the universe and have such different names for whatever it is. Not to mention the amount of different ways how we all came to be and when you look at it enough, you can actually see similar patterns. It’s interesting to me.” As much as Chaeyoung clowns her best friend with her nerdy interests, she cannot deny how impressed and proud she has always been with how smart and hard-working Tzuyu is ever since they were kids.

Back then, Tzuyu was just a tiny kid, even tinier than Chaeyoung herself and even much quieter. Everyone knew she wasn’t from around their country because of her quite uncommon name, not to mention her peculiar birth mark on her forehead that made her become a target to the other mean kids, and Chaeyoung wouldn’t have that.

She always thought punching that bully and being best friends with Tzuyu is one of her greatest achievements in life, and loves her with her whole heart.

Giving the taller girl a fond smile, she continues to finish her food before running off to her next class for the day.

+++

Chaeyoung could practically feel her eyes drooping from exhaustion.

This week has been quite hectic for her; with midterms coming up, her still ongoing search for a company to intern in, and the submission for the pre-screening of her final art portfolio. Not to mention her recurring nightmares that has more than effectively reduced her sleep to barely three hours per night for the last two weeks.

Dropping her now empty coffee cup in the nearest trash bin that did absolutely nothing for her drowsiness, she sluggishly walks on the path back to her dorm with the hope of catching at least an hour or two of sleep before delving back to her work.

  
She nearly trips over her own foot when she hears someone calling her name just a couple of feet from behind her. Turning around, she flinches in surprise to find a really bright smile directed her way at such close proximity.

“D-Dahyun sunbaenim, hello.” She greets with a hesitant bow, taking a couple of steps back to put some respectable distance between them – and away from the slightly overwhelming scent of baby powder emanating from the girl.

“Oh, I told you to just call me Dahyun unnie!” The girl chirps in her characteristically peppy tone as she twirls a lock of her blonde hair in between her fingers.

She met the girl a couple of weeks ago in one of her classes. It was quite odd, since she doesn’t remember ever seeing Dahyun in any of her other classes or even around the campus. But then again, it isn’t really her thing to pay much attention to other people at university as she’s often lost in thought of a project or an idea.

The older girl had introduced herself as a returning student – took a break for a couple of years for a sabbatical before coming back to finish her degree. Chaeyoung didn’t question it, but her high energies had always been sort of too much for her own introverted self.

“Heading back to the dorms already?” Dahyun asks, her head tilting slightly to side with her usual bright smile still on her lips.

The artist quietly nods, shifting awkwardly from where she stood. She really just wants to lie down and rest.

“Oh! I was wondering if you can come with me somewhere.” It sounded more like a statement than a question, and Chaeyoung’s confusion seem to have showed on her face because Dahyun lets out a laugh like she just made the silliest joke.

“It’s nothing weird. I just need you to help me with something.”

“What is it though?” Chaeyoung asks with a sigh, readjusting the strap of her canvass bag perched on her shoulder; her sleepiness, slowly dissipating.

“I need to get something from someone, but it’s a bit late and being alone in dark places freaks me out so I was wondering if you could keep me company.” Dahyun explains with a pout. “You’re the first person I know that passed by.”

It seemed harmless enough and it was past 9 in the evening already. Chaeyoung knew she could definitely hold out on her own; soft and pretty girl Dahyun, on the other hand, she’s not so sure. So she somehow finds herself nodding in agreement.

It’s not like she can say ‘no’ to a senior of hers anyway.

The two begin to walk away from the direction of the dorms and arrive at a very barely lit alleyway just a couple of blocks away. The chill in the night air clung to her skin more since they were nearing the beginning of the winter season.

Shoving her hands into her working jacket’s pockets in a feeble attempt to shield herself from the cold, she follows the girl into the alley. Looking around, Dahyun’s bright presence was definitely a stark contrast to the dirty and sewage-smelling passage.

Despite the buzzing of cars and other late night pedestrians on the main street, the alleyway itself is dead quiet – save for the sound of the heels of her leather boots hitting the small puddles along the way, and the very faint jingling coming from Dahyun’s gold crucifix necklace.

They were more than halfway into the alley, with Chaeyoung’s eyes too busy wandering around, that she barely registers Dahyun abruptly halting and very nearly bumps into the girl.

“What’s wrong, sunbaenim?” Chaeyoung asks, her eyes darting in front of them thinking they might have come across a mugger or something. She was also ready to tug on the girl’s arm and suggest for them to come back the next day when there was at least some sunlight when she sees her breath slowly becoming visible to her at every exhale.

Not even a moment later, she feels something faint and cold fall on her cheek.

She reaches up her fingers on the spot and feels the tiny speck melt against her warm skin – snow.

“Did you know?” The blonde suddenly spoke in a calmer tone than before, her back still turned against the younger girl. The latter let out a short hum in inquiry as snow continued to trickle from the night sky.

“Back in the old days, like before-science-and-all-that kind of old, people believed that snow was actually a way of the heavens to speak to mortals.” Dahyun continued, her head once again tilting slightly to the side as she turned and strolled past where Chaeyoung stood.

“They also believed that the manner of which the snow fell always told of how the angels and the creator felt towards them. So, a light snow like this-“, Dahyun raises her left palm up, turning slightly towards Chaeyoung just enough for the latter to see her rather ethereal side profile – the faint light from the flimsy lamp post a few feet away from them accentuating it with its soft yellow glow.

“-often meant that the heavens are sending them good biddings and blessings.”

Chaeyoung was not much of a fan of anything religious, but it wasn’t hard to figure out what the opposite of it meant. So she responds.

“So does that mean blizzards and hailstorms meant the higher ups are in a mood?” She lets out a tiny snort at her own answer, but Dahyun only gives a smile that doesn’t reach her eyes. The blonde turns on her heel to face her, with her eyes focused on Chaeyoung’s as if reading into the very essence of her soul.

[PLAY](https://youtu.be/gYX3jRbNZh8)

She doesn’t know if the chill that just ran up her spine was from the cold weather, or the unnerving look that Dahyun is giving her right now. Remembering the reason why she came with her in the first place, she inhales a quick breath and redirects her focus elsewhere before speaking once more.

“So when will this person you’re waiting for come? It’s getting late and we really should be heading back.” Chaeyoung quickly says, breaking the still ongoing silence. Dahyun doesn’t respond, only takes a daring step towards the younger girl.

Looking her up and down, the younger girl shuffles backwards at the sudden action.

“Sunbaenim?” She asks, unable to hide the surprised squeak in her tone. “What are you doing?”

“I told you, I wanted to get something from someone.” The blonde nonchalantly shrugs.

Confusion, alarm, and then fear – these were the exact feelings Chaeyoung felt as soon as she sees the crucifix that hung around Dahyun’s neck, glow and devour its wearer in a quick blinding snap and turn her into something… else.

Dahyun’s smile had impossibly widened – contorted into something more grotesque and sinister; her eyes swirling into two inky orbs.

Sheer terror envelopes Chaeyoung’s entire body when she hears what seems to be bones cracking from the pale girl’s hands. Her gaze drops and finds Dahyun’s nails, no – bones, elongating and tearing the skin of her fingertips and turning into razor sharp claws.

“What the fuck…” The shorter girl curses under her shaky breath, her knees nearly giving away at whatever kind of monstrosity that Dahyun was becoming before her. “What the fuck do you want?!” Chaeyoung yells at the other, her feet taking a shaky step backwards.

“Oh Chaeyoung. Were you not listening? I said I wanted to get something from someone… particularly, from you.” It felt so unsettling hearing Dahyun’s voice coming from this thing. Chaeyoung tries not to make it obvious, but she flits her gaze for a moment behind the girl, looking for an escape. They’re both quite far off from the main street and she’s not entirely sure if she can dodge and sprint her way out unscathed.

So she stalls, inching to the side bit by bit.

“I’m a broke college student, what in the world could you possibly want from me?”

The smile on Dahyun’s face widens even more, if that was even possible.

**“YOUR LIFE!”**

Her voice drops into a deep guttural tone as she closes the distance between the two of them, practically striding towards Chaeyoung who had now raised her hands defensively in front of her. The taller girl proceeded on striking the younger girl with her claws but ends up nearly stumbling forward as Chaeyoung drops and clumsily rolls to the side of the alley.

The creature (or Dahyun, Chaeyoung wasn’t even sure anymore) lets out a loud hiss of annoyance, whipping her head so quick towards Chaeyoung’s direction and marches up to the girl scrambling to get up from her position on the ground.

It was a long shot, but Chaeyoung tries to make a run for it.

Pushing against the cold and wet asphalt, she launches towards the exit of the alley and away from the other as fast as her legs can possibly carry her, her things long forgotten behind her. She makes a grave mistake, however, of looking back when she hears a loud flapping sound behind her and feels a sudden strong gust of wind that almost knocks her out of her footing.

What she sees is something her mind couldn’t even comprehend to be possible; it was Dahyun, but now with these huge, pure white wings that spread out from her back and flapping as she hovers over the cold ground. Her eyes have now entirely turned into pure black ones that never seem to tear itself away from Chaeyoung’s own dark brown ones.

As unworldly as Dahyun looked, the golden glow the crucifix around her neck also released this strange warmth that reached where Chaeyoung was. She finds herself stopping on her tracks and looking back at Dahyun’s floating form a few meters away from her.

Chaeyoung felt weirdly entranced by the energy she’s feeling; it was familiar, calming and strong. The very same one she feels when she gets her ‘dreams’. She was beginning to feel like she should just stop running away.

“SON CHAEYOUNG, WATCH OUT!”

Chaeyoung hears a female voice from behind her but she snaps out of it a second too late as she feels herself catapulted from where she stood when a strong burst of wind from Dahyun’s fluttering wings hit her right in the gut and crash landing onto the cold cement with a loud crack.

She curses under her breath, grimacing at the massive pain that has now overtaken her entire body and the raging headache that has hit her all of a sudden. There was a weird ringing in her ears, and her vision has gone slightly blurry.

Chaeyoung looks back at the girl that called out to her and sees Tzuyu running towards her.

“No, Tzuyu!” She warns as loudly as she could, but the girl kept coming.

And she has gotten the creature’s attention on her as soon as she reached Chaeyoung’s side.

“Are you okay?!”

“No, you have to go. You have to run.” Chaeyoung completely brushes off the question, trying to push Tzuyu away from her and towards the exit of the alley.

Suddenly, Chaeyoung feels the air around them shifting; the gust of wind getting stronger and she finds Dahyun screeching and zooming towards her and Tzuyu’s direction.

It was like time slowed down and all she could think of was that she can’t let Tzuyu get hurt, she simply can’t.

Pushing herself off the cold concrete in a pure rush of adrenaline, Chaeyoung puts herself in between Dahyun and Tzuyu. Her left arm pulling the taller girl behind her and her right hand rose defensively in front of them. She hears the screeching get louder and waits for the painful hit.

But it never comes. Only a bright glow of lilac light stemming from her fists that covered her entire arm and deflecting Dahyun’s own force and sending her tumbling backwards through the air.

She doesn’t completely understand it, but Chaeyoung finds herself surging with energy she hasn’t felt before as the light slightly subsides and reveals the rose tattoos on her knuckles spring to life and extending out into thick and long rose thorn tendrils.

“What is happening?”

An ear-splitting screech snaps Chaeyoung into focus and on sheer instinct, points the rose tendrils towards the incoming creature and mentally commands it to slink around Dahyun’s arms and legs and hold her in place. The creature thrashed and tried to break free from the tendrils’ grasp, snarling at the two girls.

Sensing the futility of her attempt, Dahyun halts her movements and looks at Chaeyoung with malicious smirk gracing her lips.

“You may have thwarted me now, but there will be others – my brothers and sisters who also want nothing but the demise of your kind. You are a disgrace to the High Heavens, an abomination!” Dahyun growled.

“You will not survive the wrath of our god. They will kill you, and that little traitor behind you.”

“Traitor?” Chaeyoung mumbles, turning around to look at Tzuyu who looked at her with pleading eyes.

Taking advantage of her distracted state, Dahyun manages to break free of the loosened holds of the rose tendrils and lunges at the two.

But she doesn’t make it – only finds herself struck through the heart by a sword, its blade glowing with purple flames that seared through her cream-colored top. Sputtering and coughing out what seems like golden blood, Dahyun only grins through the burning pain she’s feeling; her hands steaming from her hold on the blade.

“You will perish, Nephalem. It is the will of the gods, and it will be done.”

And just like that, Dahyun’s form begins to flurry as if it was made of snow and stars, disappearing into the wind.

Chaeyoung, in her most dumbfounded state, watches as the sword in her left hand retracts into her forearm; back into a tattoo.

And then she blacks out.

+++

**The Second Verse : Daemon**

_Katarina…_

There it is again. That voice.

_Katarina, wake up._

Where are you?

_You need to know the truth…_

What is it?

_Katarina…_

_Katarina…_

Show yourself!

_Katarina – RUN!_

Her eyes snap open to a dimly lit room. The air stuffy and slightly suffocating – just like all the other nights that she’s had these dreams. She’s had them ever since she turned twenty-one, but had gotten more frequent over the last two weeks.

She looks around the room, readjusting her gaze to the lack of lighting and recognizes the familiar paintings on the charcoal painted wall. She turns her head to the door and sees the red glow of the LED clock above that says it’s exactly three o’clock in the morning.

Talk about perfect timing.

She feels parched, her head still throbbing and swimming from her dream and the dream before that.

_More like a nightmare._ Chaeyoung thinks.

Only it wasn’t a dream, because she gets up from the cushy leather seat and she feels like she’s been hit by a bus five times over. She groans at the pain, carefully shifting to examine how much more damage she’s taken.

“Oh, you’re awake. Good.” Chaeyoung jolts at the voice. She looks up and finds Tzuyu standing at the doorway.

“How are you feeling?”

“Pretty fucked up, thanks fo- what the fuck happened to your eye?” Forgetting about her own injuries, Chaeyoung stalks off from the chair and towards Tzuyu. She takes the taller girl’s face into her hands and looks intently on the bandage that is covering her right eye.

Tzuyu musters a small smile and places a reassuring hand on top of Chaeyoung’s own on her face.

“I’m fine. You, however, are not. So sit.” She gently pulls Chaeyoung to sit beside her on the couch situated beneath the paintings.

“What do you remember from tonight?” Tzuyu carefully asks; her hands still on Chaeyoung’s as she strokes on the back of her palms with her thumbs.

Chaeyoung recounts the encounter, not sparing any of the juicy details and descriptions because this was Chou Tzuyu – her childhood best friend that gets to know everything and anything about her.

She tells her about the wings, the claws, the calming bright light.

“Hang on, how did I get here? Did you carry me here instead of getting your eye checked at the hospital?!” The confusion grows and it shows when Chaeyoung’s eyebrows furrow and her eyes seem to gloss over, trying to make sense of everything.

“Hey-hey..” Tzuyu’s gentle voice tugs Chaeyoung right back out of her incoming rumination. “It’s okay, you’re okay. I brought you here.”

“B-But how? I don’t understand, we were at the alley… she called you a traitor and she called me… something.” She pulls her hands away from Tzuyu’s warm grasp and buries her face onto them. Tzuyu could only sigh. Just a few weeks ago, she would have laughed at you if you told her these things.

But it’s all different now.

‘They’ were different.

Carefully reaching forward, Tzuyu takes a hold of Chaeyoung’s hands and pulls them towards her own warm ones again. Cupping her warm hand over the shorter girl’s jaw, she looks intently at her best friend, ready to uncover what she has.

“Look at me.” Tzuyu commands in the gentlest voice she could. “There is something I have to tell you and it may sound crazy-“

“After today, I doubt anything else can sound crazier.” Chaeyoung lightly scoffed, making Tzuyu smile a bit.

“You’d be surprised.” Tzuyu takes a deep breath. Truthfully, she knew how deep Chaeyoung’s faith in her runs.

So she does it.

Removing her hold on Chaeyoung’s hands, she reaches for the bandage she’s stuck over her right eye. Watching as Tzuyu carefully peels off the adhesive, the shorter girl only does so with curious eyes – similar to the one she had when they first met and saw the curiously symmetrical birth mark that her best friend has on her forehead that she hid behind a curtain of her bangs.

It’d be a lie for Chaeyoung to say that she wasn’t the littlest bit scared. But this was Tzuyu.

Tzuyu, who stuck with her through thick and thin. Tzuyu, who was the only person able to calm her down when she gets anxious, or angry or scared. Tzuyu, who she loves with her whole heart and will fight a hundred Dahyuns for.

Tzuyu, who has… a white right eye?

No.

Silver. A silver iris.

“What happened to your eye?” Chaeyoung scoots closer – her face only mere inches away from Tzuyu’s as she looks intently at the odd eye. The latter could only let out an awkward cough at the proximity, making Chaeyoung hyper aware of their distance and of the heat that has now rushed up to her cheeks.

Sinking back into the couch, she waits for Tzuyu to start talking but only finds the latter seemingly deep in thought; possibly searching for the right words to say, which was so like her. So Chaeyoung waits a bit more.

“These past two weeks, I’ve been getting these… strange dreams.” Tzuyu finally started, her hands fiddling together nervously.

“More like voices, speaking to me while I walk in this dark place.” This part sounded awfully familiar to Chaeyoung.

“At first, they didn’t make sense. But listening closer, they were calling out this name – Katarina.” Chaeyoung shifts uncomfortably on her seat. This was the same name she’s heard her being called in her dreams, and she’s never told Tzuyu about it; only that she’s been getting weird dreams.

“Then what happened?”

“My right eye started to sting at random times after that, and I’d get these – these strong whiffs of baby powder scent or something charred. As with the dreams, after I figured out the name, I just suddenly remembered things, like they were some sort of forgotten memory or something. About me… and about you.” Shifting her focus on Chaeyoung again, Tzuyu recognizes the look on the former’s face and her jaw drops at the realization.

“You’ve been having the same dreams, haven’t you?” It wasn’t accusatory, only a search for affirmation that she wasn’t losing her mind and Chaeyoung only nods. “At first, I thought maybe I was just losing it but, that’s really not the case now.”

“So, the facts… what are they?”

“This would really sound crazy, but like you said, after today I don’t think it is.” There wasn’t really any other way to say it, but that doesn’t mean it was easy to say.

After all, she had only made sense of things a couple of hours ago too.

“She’s an angel and you’re a Nephalem.”

Another female voice says. Chaeyoung whips her head to the door of the room and finds a friendly face, leaning against the frame with two steaming mugs in her grasp.

“See that wasn’t so hard, was it?”

+++

**The Third Verse : Nephalem**

“I’m a what?”

“Yer a wizard, Harry.” Yoo Jeongyeon, Chaeyoung’s favorite local tattoo artist and the owner of the workroom they’re currently in, laughs at her own joke and makes Tzuyu avert her gaze out of embarrassment and Chaeyoung looks at her like she just grew another head.

“Seriously Chaeng, clean out your ears.”

Shaking her head in confusion, Chaeyoung turns on her seat to face the older girl that has now placed the mugs on the table in front of them and took her usual seat on the leather stool opposite them.

“What the hell is going on and what are you doing here? What do you know?” The woman visibly stiffens at the serious tone that Chaeyoung is using. The younger one is confused, agitated and most probably scared, and she can’t blame her.

“Well, first – you’re in my shop and I have every bit of a right to be here. Second, you and your friend here are in serious danger and you’re lucky I found both of you before anyone else did. Well, someone already did.” The playful grin that Jeongyeon sported has completely disappeared, and she pushes the wheeled stool she sat on towards the opposite side of the room and to her shelf. She plucks out one of the old, leather-bound books that were stacked beside her vinyl collection before rolling back to her previous place.

She carefully settles the worn book on the table and opens its pages to reveal a series of paragraphs, written in a language that Chaeyoung couldn’t understand. Sketches of different creatures, similarly styled as the ones on the paintings on her walls adorned the pages.

Jeongyeon stops on a page, where a creature that looked a lot like the one she just kebabed a few hours ago is drawn.

“What you two saw a few hours is an angel – well, one of the lower ranking ones, in their true form.” Pointing at the sketch, the resemblance between it and Dahyun were uncanny. It sends shivers down Chaeyoung’s spine.

“And that particular angel works for that guy.” This time, pointing at the leftmost painting above them in a mix of calming blues, whites and gold. “The God of the High Heavens – who, by the way, is in this on-going beef with the guy next to him.”

Shifting their gazes to the next painting on its right, the canvass filled with burning reds, oranges and black. “The God of the Burning Hells.”

It all seems surreal, that something like this could exist. But then in truth, there are still a lot of things that the human mind cannot comprehend, much less envision as an actual tangible reality.

“Those two have been at war with each other since, oh I don’t know, the day they started to exist? They called it ‘The Great Conflict’ and both sides have spawned and sired all kinds of angels and demons at their disposal to fight for them.”

“And what does that have to do with us?” Chaeyoung asks; her fingers curiously grazing the surface of the page.

“You said I was… an angel.” Tzuyu says awkwardly, glancing momentarily at Chaeyoung beside her. “And Chaeyoung is a Nephalim?”

“A Nephalem with an ‘E’, hun. And chill both of you, I’m getting there.” Jeongyeon playfully winks, somehow relieved that the two are calmer than she anticipated.

“Moving on! These two big guys had waged an endless war against each other, and well, not everyone was onboard with that idea and were simply tired of the endless carnage.” Jeongyeon reaches forward and flips the page again, this time, to a sketch of two beings.

“These two in particular – Lilith of the Burning Hells and Inarius of the High Heavens, both high-ranking beings on their respective sides have decided to leave behind the conflict and live in a different dimension, away from the Gods. In this endeavor, they took quite a handful of angels and demons with them and were able to live in peace and harmony despite their glaringly obvious differences.”

Jeongyeon looks at the final two paintings that hung on her wall – ones of Lilith and Inarius, side-by-side. Noticing this, Chaeyoung stands from her seat and turns to look at it with her full attention, and taking in the forms and strokes of paint that made them.

“In an event so unprecedented, those two had fallen in love and bore off springs. Half-angel, half-demon – they called them, Nephalems.”

Chaeyoung wasn’t sure if it was her injuries catching up to her or if it was just the reality of things hitting her when she feels herself slump back to the couch, dazed and unblinking. “And you’re saying… that I’m one of those?”

“Yes, that would be the case.” Jeongyeon responds. “You were born and given the divine name ‘Katarina’ by your father, which is the same name you two have been hearing in your dreams.”

There was a moment of silence in the air, there are still so much to be uncovered and yet, it all seems to prove a bit too much to take in at once. In the midst of it, Chaeyoung notices how unflinching Tzuyu is beside her as she calmly held Chaeyoung’s hand on her lap.

“Did you know about this from the beginning?” The shorter girl asks; her tone unreadable.

“N-No. I told you, I only started having the dreams a few weeks ago and then earlier while you were still out, Jeongyeon unnie told me everything.” Tzuyu gives her a tight-lipped smile. She can feel the nervous energy flowing through Chaeyoung at the moment. In fact, she can feel the energy of anything living around her. She chalks it up to her newly blossoming angel powers, and how she knew Jeongyeon could be trusted the moment she ran into her outside the alley.

“Now onto the bigger questions that I know is inside that big brain of yours: why are you here and why is all of this happening.” Jeongyeon clasps her hands together before proceeding to pull the book towards her and flipping through the pages again.

“When Nephalems were born, they had the natural ability to wield the powers of both their angel and demon heritage.” Placing the book again in front of them, a sketch of what looks like an altered human anatomy is displayed. “The weaknesses of angels are filled by the strengths of demons, and vice versa; the Nephalems became way more powerful than their high-ranking divine parents and that caught the attention of the Gods.”

The tattoo artist looks at Chaeyoung, who remained quiet on her seat. She takes it as a sign to move on.

“Lilith and Inarius, your parents, they knew that the Gods had perceived their children as a threat and would stop at nothing to wipe you out of existence. They also knew that their small faction of renegade angels and demons wouldn’t stand a chance against the armies of the High Heavens and the hordes of Burning Hells.”

“Yes, they had you and your siblings but you were much, much too young to even fight and keeping you together and your collective energies only heightened the big red target each of you had the moment you were born. And so, they decided to split you all up and hide you in different dimensions to mask your presence. Your father, Inarius, was also smart enough to bestow a protection spell that will suppress your powers until your twenty-first birthday and equip each one you with one guardian to protect you as you live as mortals.”

With this information, Chaeyoung looks at Tzuyu intently. She looks deep into her best friend’s eyes with a silent question that the other immediately understood and nods to. A storm of emotions seem to well in her chest and she finds her grip on Tzuyu’s hands tightening a bit.

“These guardians are either an angel or a demon, and in your case you got yourself a literal guardian angel.” Jeongyeon explains, crossing her arms in front of her and eyeing the girls carefully.

“Now, these carefully selected guardians have been given a protection spell too, only it wiped away their memories from their life as an angel or a demon to avoid them spilling the truth of their existence and was encased in a human form that can grow alongside their Nephalems. So this,” Jeongyeon gestures at Tzuyu’s entirety, waving her hand in a circular motion. “is not your true form yet. That silver eye of yours is just the start, but eventually you’ll be able to transform into your true form and back to your human form at will. You will also start remembering things from your time as a renegade angel, and your powers.”

“And how exactly do you know all this?” The shorter girl asks so suddenly, making Jeongyeon freeze for a moment. She takes a deep breath before looking back at Chaeyoung, whose eyes seem to burn with questions.

“My kind is called different names in different dimensions, but here I am simply called a Druid.” She smiles gently, slowly reaching forward and pushing the two mugs of tea towards the girls. “Drink. Its chamomile, should be warm enough now.”

Tzuyu could still sense the hesitance on Chaeyoung’s part as she eyes the mug in front of her, so she takes initiative and takes one for herself and starts to slowly sip on the calming liquid. She knows she needs it too. Not too long after, Chaeyoung follows her lead and takes a mug for herself.

“What exactly is a Druid?” The latter once again asks, feeling calmer and warmer than she did before. Must be the tea.

“Druids are spiritual beings that exist as a link between the gods, divine beings and mortals, only this time we are utilized by your parents to be an additional guide for when you start to awaken. My bloodline has been specifically chosen to carry the spirit of this dimension’s Druid and to pass on this message to the both of you.

“To be honest, I wasn’t completely sure that you were the Nephalem when you first walked in my shop, but when I saw your friend and her angel mark on her forehead, I knew I had found you.”

“So what happens now?” Tzuyu asks this time, setting down the now empty mug on the table. Hearing all these from Jeongyeon brought some sense of familiarity to her, as if she’s known this all her life. She begins to remember bits and pieces from her own dreams and realizes that these were actual memories.

Running her fingers through her blonde locks, Jeongyeon seems to think of what to answer but ends up shrugging. “Seeing as one of them had infiltrated this dimension already, it only means they were able to track down the others too. We’re currently in the furthest and most difficult dimension to travel to, so that also means –“

Jeongyeon’s eyes widen in alarm, she swiftly gets up from the stool and grabs Tzuyu by the wrist, tugging on her to stand.

“Hey, ease up! What do you think you’re doing?” Chaeyoung protests as soon as she sees the sudden action and the discomfort on her best friend’s face. It doesn’t last, however, when suddenly Tzuyu’s right eye begins to glow, its silver light now seeping to her left in quick succession as the calm air in the room turns into a strong gust of wind.

Jeongyeon lets her go and takes a couple of steps backward, making Chaeyoung do the same as she watches Tzuyu slowly levitate off the ground, her eyes glowing brighter than before and the mark on her forehead burning bright red.

“What the fuck is going on?!”

“You’ll see soon enough, just wait.”

And just as Jeongyeon said, the winds halt and Tzuyu slowly descends from her foot-high levitation; her eyes returning into its previous state as she falters to the couch, catching her breath.

“Are you okay?” Chaeyoung asks with a worried tone, rushing beside Tzuyu who suddenly looks at her in disbelief and sadness. “What is it?”

“Chaeyoung…. They’re gone. All of them.” Tzuyu began, her eyes looking into her best friend’s who looked at her with confusion. “What do you mean they’re gone? Who are you talking about?”

Chaeyoung had an inkling, but she wanted to hear it for herself.

“The other Nephalems, your siblings – they’re all gone.”

The silence was palpable after that. Just as Chaeyoung was slowly gaining hope of having an actual family for her to reunite with, it’s ripped right out of her grasp. She couldn’t help the stinging in her eyes as Tzuyu tries to console her and Jeongyeon wordlessly turns around.

“It seems that the prophecy is unfolding.” Jeongyeon suddenly mutters and turns around with a grim expression.

_“The last of their kind shall bear the crown,_

_And fight to the end until one is down._

_The good and the bad that shall unite,_

_Will be nothing but a mere blight._

_For the last child of day and night,_

_Shall endure ‘til the end of the plight.”_

Tzuyu recites, her eyes swimming in memories. It was easy enough to understand – the last of their kind, the last child.

“The last child of day and night is you, Chaeyoung. You’re the last Nephalem.”

+++

**The Fourth Verse : Caelum et Infernum**

They’ve been on the road for the last few hours. With Tzuyu on the wheel and Chaeyoung sitting quietly on the passenger seat with her knees tucked close to her chest as she gathers herself from what has transpired in the last 24 hours.

Aside from being attacked in an alleyway by a supernatural creature, being told that she was this powerful divine being by her tattoo artist, her best friend being an actual guardian angel, she’d thought that she might at least get a day or two to process things, but no.

The shop just had to be blown and attacked by a couple of creatures (demons, this time) with serpent-like features and hooves for feet. Jeongyeon, who had been preparing for years for this, had ordered for them to run and take her jeep while she uses her own magic to shield their getaway.

Chaeyoung feels guilty. She supposedly had these powers and she could have used them to fight and save Jeongyeon too, but she willingly allowed herself to be tugged away into running by Tzuyu. She looks at her best friend, the latter’s eyes (well, eye. She decided to wear a bandage over her eye once more to avoid getting unwarranted attention) still trained on the dark road as they entered the interstate.

“It wasn’t your fault. We had to get away, we both don’t know how to use our powers yet and we could’ve died trying to figure it out right then and there.” Chaeyoung flinches and finds herself scoffing.

“What, you have mind-reading powers now?”

“I don’t, but I can feel your energy. And you’re blaming yourself.” Tzuyu responds, brushing off Chaeyoung’s sarcastic tone. That’s the thing they’ve always had with each other, an unspoken understanding of how and why one of them reacts a certain way. Even without her powers, Tzuyu could read Chaeyoung easily like the palm of her hand.

How could she not when they grew up together.

But it certainly explains a lot of occurrences in their life together. How Tzuyu could sense when Chaeyoung was upset even if they were apart, or how she’d always been drawn to the younger girl, to be her friend, to protect her.

She can’t help but think if it was only because deep down, she knew she had to; that it was her life’s mission. But then she remembers how Chaeyoung had stood up for her on countless occasions, befriended her and took care of her, and she realizes that she cares for her too more than what any divine being or prophecy can dictate.

Tzuyu loves Chaeyoung, and Chaeyoung loves her. That’s how it’s always been.

And it’s proven to be true when Chaeyoung shifts in her seat and scoots closer to Tzuyu, resting her head on the taller girl’s shoulder as she murmurs an apology. Tzuyu tries the bite back the smile forming on her lips, because for someone that’s supposed to be so powerful, Chaeyoung definitely looked more like a baby right now.

“What are you even sorry for?” Chaeyoung sighs at the question, not looking away from the road ahead of them.

“I don’t know… for being snappy? For being in this mess with me?” And it was true. Chaeyoung felt guilty that someone like Tzuyu is tasked to protect her and possibly risk her life for her when she had no interest in being a divine being nor to be thrown in the middle of a squabble of annoying gods.

All she wanted was to graduate from college, be an artist, and earn enough to afford living in a decent house with a big library for Tzuyu and a large work room for herself. Not once did she ever think that she’d be destined for something bigger than that.

Planting a quick reassuring kiss on the top of the smaller one’s head, Tzuyu returns her attention to driving. She needed to get them out somewhere safe, somewhere they can both learn about themselves and what they can do.

Tzuyu snaps out of her thoughts when she feels Chaeyoung’s calm heartbeat and her soft hum – an indication that she’d fallen asleep.

She would do anything for Son Chaeyoung.

+++

Arriving at a farm somewhere in the outskirts of the city where Jeongyeon had preset the GPS to, Tzuyu turns off the engine of the jeep and peers through the windshield for any sign of life. It’s nearly noon, and the blazing sun’s heat is seeping into the car and awakens Chaeyoung from her slumber.

“Where are we?” The girl asks, still rubbing out the sleep from her eyes.

“I’m not sure. I just followed the GPS like Jeongyeon unnie said I should. Maybe we should-“

“Hands off the steering wheel and up where I can see them.” Tzuyu freezes at the sound of the cocking of a shotgun right outside the window beside her. She doesn’t dare move, but she can sense Chaeyoung’s heightened energies and before she could even stop her, long rose stem tendrils dash past her and through the window, easily grabbing a hold of the person’s shotgun and yanking it out of his grasp.

The man tumbles backwards, dragged by the sudden jerk of the weapon out of his hand and he scrambles to get up and find another weapon to arm himself with. An annoyed Chaeyoung jumps out of the jeep, followed by Tzuyu, and marches toward him as he grabs an axe resting on the pile of chopped firewood nearby.

Tzuyu didn’t notice it before, but the man (despite standing at the same height as her) is younger than she initially thought, no more than twenty and with a lot of nervous energy as he pointed the axe at the two of them.

“Who are you?! And why are you here? Where is Jeongyeon noona?!” The boy swings the axe as Chaeyoung takes another step forward.

“What the fuck is up with this kid?” Chaeyoung huffs.

“I’m nineteen! I’m not a kid! And you didn’t answer my question.” He shakily asks once more and this time, it’s Tzuyu that takes a gentle step forward.

“My name is Tzuyu, and this is Chaeyoung. We’re friends of Jeongyeon unnie, and she sent us here.”

The words weren’t even addressed to her, but even Chaeyoung feels herself calm down from Tzuyu’s gentle voice. The boy visibly relaxes, the axe slowly lowering in front of him.

“We’re not here to harm you – in fact, we’re looking for a safe place to stay.” The angel continues, and suddenly the air begins to smell of jasmine. Chaeyoung looks at Tzuyu, whose back is now turned against her as she slowly approaches the boy and calmly takes the axe away from him and then chucking it away to the side.

The boy has calmed down significantly, but still eyes the two warily. Until his gaze falls on Tzuyu’s forehead as the wind shifted her bangs to side and revealed her angel mark. He lets out a relieved smile, his eyes turning into two cute crescents as he grabbed Tzuyu’s hand and shook it.

“You’re the guardian! The one Jeongyeon noona spoke of! And you-“ he releases Tzuyu’s hand and jogs up to Chaeyoung and takes a hold of her hand and shakes it with the same enthusiasm as he had before. “-you must be the Nephalem. It’s an honor to meet both of you!”

Chaeyoung shoots Tzuyu a look before slowly tugging her hand away from the boy’s grasp.

“I’m sorry, but we didn’t catch a name.” Tzuyu says, walking towards Chaeyoung’s side and facing the boy who stood a few feet away from them. He wore a pair of dark jeans and a dark blue shirt tucked in and a pair of work boots. Now that he was smiling at them, with bits of paint staining his tanned cheeks, he did seem more like his age and had a friendly vibe.

“I’m Diolex! But you can just call me Dio. I mean, Jeongyeon noona does.”

+++

In the last couple of hours since their arrival, Chaeyoung and Tzuyu were immediately acquainted with Dio and his connection to their druid friend back in the city.

Like how this farm is one of Jeongyeon’s prepared safe-houses, and Dio, an indie artist and budding tattoo artist, is Jeongyeon’s apprentice. Much to the two women’s surprise, the boy is well-versed in all things divine and is also an amazing cook.

They two girls find themselves sat at the dining table of the boy’s home, the latter cooking generous portions of eggs and bacon, with a side of toast and orange juice. While eating, Dio tells them about Jeongyeon taking him under her wing after one fateful event that involved a street gang and Jeongyeon hexing them.

He excitedly tells the two of how he’s slowly learning to cast spells, mostly protective ones and channel divine messages and predictions through his art, momentarily freezing when he feels his mentor’s spirit channel through him and let him know that her human form was destroyed and that she may take quite some time to reform.

It wasn’t a surprise when the boy takes out a similar worn, leather-bound book and offers it to the two; explaining that it was a sort of bestiary but for angels and demons. It was fascinating for Tzuyu to take a look at the language it was written it and actually beginning to remember and understand what they meant.

She learns that she belonged to the faction of second-generation angels – ones that had similar powers to their predecessors, except for their invulnerability and archangel status. Chaeyoung finds it interesting how certain angels emit a particular scent when their powers are in use, like Dahyun’s baby powder scent and Tzuyu’s jasmine one.

Super human senses, stamina, strength and speed, clairvoyance, dream walking, winged flight – and so much more that Tzuyu needs to remember and learn in order to accomplish her mission of protecting Chaeyoung. The shorter girl, on the other hand, is puzzled of the lack of pages for Nephalems and doesn’t hesitate asking their new acquaintance about it.

“Oh, Jeongyeon noona said it’s because they weren’t really able to test out how your powers manifested yet; only that the energies that you and your siblings had were too much, too powerful to not be noticed. But one thing is for sure: you’re powerful enough to be seen as a threat by the highest gods.”

This definitely doesn’t sit too well with Chaeyoung. Like she’s previously mulled over, she never wanted to be a part of this. But it’s not like she had any choice, she had to do something about it and she had to protect what she has – who she has.

Soon after the meal was over, Dio directs the two to a spare room in the house and leaves them to rest.

As peaceful as it seemed there with the sunlight streaming into the room through the glass windows, and the chirping of birds outside, there were still things they needed to discuss. The two never really had the chance, given the situation.

Taking a seat on the bed, Chaeyoung sits with her legs stretched out in front of her. She looks at her best friend and softly pats the space beside her, which the latter immediately takes up as she sits in a similar way as the other.

For a moment, they look out the window that was opposite them and was overlooking the green pastures of the farm. It was quiet and peaceful.

Despite the chaos in her mind, Chaeyoung always found solitude with Tzuyu and so she takes the initiative and reaches for the taller girl’s hand beside her and intertwines their fingers; her own fitting so perfectly in between the spaces of Tzuyu’s slender ones.

“What’s on your mind?” Tzuyu inquires, her voice neutral and gentle. Chaeyoung lets out a long sigh, her body softening and her head leaning on the taller girl’s shoulder naturally.

“That it wouldn’t be such a bad idea to live in a farm like this once we graduate? I think the quiet is good for us, plus you get to raise cows and dogs if you want.” The angel finds herself smiling wistfully at the prospect of it. They’ve talked about it ever since they were kids – the two of them living in one house together until they become the annoying neighborhood grandmas.

Funnily enough, Tzuyu has never thought of any other way to spend the rest of her life. She’s always just imagined it being by Chaeyoung’s side, no matter what.

“You can still have your own library with all your history books and artifacts, I get my own work room beside yours. We live off of the vegetables and fruits we grow on our farm.” Chaeyoung continues.

“That’s not such a bad way to live, I suppose.”

“You suppose? You SUPPOSE? Wow, Chou Tzuyu. And here I am professing my intent to live with you forever.” Chaeyoung feigns fake offense and playfully slaps Tzuyu’s leg, earning a cute giggle from the latter. It wasn’t exactly straight forward, but Tzuyu understood.

She understood because she felt the same way.

“Well, when all this is over, we could.”

“And when will it be over? You heard those two, we’re literally being hunted down by literal gods and their minions. I doubt it’ll be close to easy, and I’m…” Chaeyoung trails off.

She was anxious and scared, she had every reason to be. And as memories of her past returned to Tzuyu, she can’t deny how brutal the war was to everyone involved. How it wiped out most of her kind and then respawned like mere video game characters, only to fight the same, never-ending battle; the very reason why she fled with Inarius and the other renegade angels.

Tzuyu feels a certain emotional heaviness weigh on her chest like a giant anvil, as images of her fallen brothers and sisters fill her mind. Memories of the war and the numerous casualties on both sides, either leaders unrelenting and merciless towards the other; the glimmer of hope when Inarius offers her the chance to exist away from all of it and how she took it without any hesitance.

How she volunteered to be one of the guardians as soon as the news of the gods plotting to kill the Nephalem children arrived, and how the prophecy of the Fates came to all of them as soon as they binded to their respective Nephalem.

Tzuyu doesn’t register the tear that falls down her cheeks until Chaeyoung reached over to wipe it away, looking at her with gentle sadness.

“You’ve been through so much.” Chaeyoung whispered, it was faint but the angel doesn’t fail to catch it.

“I saw it in my head, what you were thinking.” Chaeyoung explains calmly. “I think we could share memories and thoughts or something.”

Tzuyu could only nod, tucking a strand of her hair behind her ear when she hears Chaeyoung let out a huge resolute sigh beside her and getting off the bed. She rounds to Tzuyu’s side and offers a hand, which the latter takes with a hint of confusion.

But Chaeyoung simply gives her a cheeky smile and presses a kiss on her knuckles.

“It’s not going happen again – not if I can help it.” The smaller girl says firmly.

“After all, I’m supposed to be all-powerful, right?”

+++

**The Fifth Verse : Para Bellum**

Days pass in the farm, and the two had spent nearly every waking moment studying and testing out each other’s skills and powers. Dio, on the other hand, had been trying to find away to connect to his mentor again and figure out how he can help her reform.

So far, they’ve learnt that Chaeyoung’s affinity to summon her tattoos to life was not limited to her rose tattoos on her knuckles and the flaming sword on her left forearm, and she was somehow excited about it. She’s also learned to manipulate her tendrils into a makeshift shield – thanks to Dio’s genius suggestion when she started complaining about not having one because apparently ‘a shield is a must’ (Tzuyu secretly laughs at Chaeyoung’s cute whining at this point).

Meanwhile, Tzuyu remembers her own choice of weapon – a golden bow and quiver she can summon at will and use with god-like accuracy, leaving even her best friend dumbfounded when she hits a large oak tree and splits it into two with a single arrow.

On one occasion, Chaeyoung tried to cook and accidentally sets the pan on fire telepathically when Tzuyu suddenly teleported beside her from outside.

It was an eye-opening experience for them, learning about themselves and the other and more. Studying and strategizing how they can use their powers alongside the other’s and slowly uncovering more memories from Tzuyu’s past.

But all calm must somehow come to an end.

And it comes in the form of their friend, Dio, collapsing in the middle of dinner with his eyes rolling to the back of his head as Tzuyu held his head on her lap.

He begins to spew out murky green smoke that matched the glowing green his eyes have turned into, before he gets up and walks calmly to grab one of his sketchpads that were left lying around and starts sketching.

Tzuyu recognizes the energy that came from the boy, it was similar to Jeongyeon’s – and that meant that she was indeed, here. After a few minutes, an anxious Chaeyoung peers from behind the boy, looking apprehensively at the charcoal figures on the paper.

The boy, who seemed to have returned to normal, looks at his stained hands and back to the piece of paper. Worry and panic spread on his features as he turns toward the two.

“They’re coming, all of them. Right now.”

+++

[PLAY](https://youtu.be/boj01HHAUG0)

No amount of preparation is enough for the chaos and horror that descended the farm that night.

The three ran out of the house, only to be met by powerful gusts of wind that nearly made them lose their footing. Things happened rather quickly as the sky seemed to tear open – a rift in the dimension as hordes upon hordes of winged demons and angels descended from its crevice.

There was no time to be afraid, no time to over-think.

Just like Chaeyoung promised Tzuyu, she’s not going to go down without a fight.

Throwing a look at the boy, Dio nods in immediate understanding and runs off from the house’s front porch.

As the creatures set foot in the middle of the farm’s pasture, Chaeyoung summons her sword out of her forearm – its purple flames, burning stronger than before. In a flash of golden light, Tzuyu’s bow and arrow materializes on her hands as they march towards the incoming horde.

Just like they practiced in the past few days, Tzuyu finds higher ground – a top of a hay bale near the house and begins shooting arrow upon arrow, relentlessly. Meanwhile, Chaeyoung found herself in the middle of a heated sword fight. Only, she was outnumbered by a hundred to one.

She manages to slow the horde down, however, with the use of her rose tendrils. The Nephalem cleverly points her right hand to the dirt and sends multiple tendrils to travel underneath the ground, only to emerge from the earth and wrap around the enemies’ bodies’ and pin them down to the ground as she picks them off with her sword.

Soon enough, some of the angels and demons have figured out this tactic and began flying off the ground. Tzuyu takes this opportunity to use one of her special skills – something she calls the ‘Dance of a Thousand Arrows’.

A bright blue arrow appears in her quiver and she pulls it out determinedly and loads it on her bow in one swift motion. And like its namesake, the arrow splits into a thousand raging ones as soon as it is released into the sky, hitting most of the winged creatures and reducing those fatally wounded into ashes.

As her powers surface the more she uses them, Chaeyoung finds herself becoming more agile and quick on her feet. Dodging the enemies’ attacks and blocking them without so much as a flinch. She’s able to withstand hits that could kill a normal human being and retaliate with the same fervor and maybe even more force.

But despite how well they were holding down the figurative fort, the rift remains open and it continues to spew out more of them, effectively replacing their slain comrades on the field.

Still not quite used to her powers, Chaeyoung finds herself panting and heaving from all the fighting. In an attempt to create a distraction, the girl focuses on the intricate cloud tattoo on her right bicep, it burns a strong shade of lilac before immediately lifting off her skin and creating a thick fog that engulfed the confused creatures as most of them mostly whacked and hacked blindly in search of their intended target.

Chaeyoung who could see through the fog, quickly retreats and searches for Tzuyu in the crowd. They needed to somehow close the rift and they need to do it fast.

Effectively vanquishing the unsuspecting angels and demons on her path, she spots Tzuyu and her pale blue aura a few meters away from her, and currently somersaulting her way out of a stubborn demon’s attack.

However, the angel still finds herself surrounded, as somehow the fog lifts and reveals her current position and immediately making the nearby beings lock on her and attack.

Suddenly brimming with adrenaline, Chaeyoung sprints and bulldozes her way through the crowd forming around her best friend. Swinging her sword, Chaeyoung reduces the horde layer by layer until she stood a few meters away from Tzuyu, who was fending off a half-boar, half-man creature that stood a couple of heads taller than her.

In the heat of the moment, the Nephalem vaults herself off the ground with a forceful jump and raises her flaming sword overhead before striking down the demon with its blade from his head and down until her own feet reached the ground.

Distracted, Chaeyoung doesn’t notice another angel that has jumped over the pile of fallen demons she’s slain and is now coming towards her with fiery determination.

She only hears the sickening sound of the sharp blade tearing through flesh, as she whips her head around and finds Tzuyu hovering over her protectively with a saber through her heart.

“NO!”

[PLAY](https://youtu.be/T17Bl1R0OZk)

+++

**The Final Verse : Divine Omens**

Time begins to slow down and then comes to a complete halt as soon as Chaeyoung’s eyes meet Tzuyu’s, the latter’s face quickly draining in color as she falls to her knees. In a fit of panic, Chaeyoung scrambles to catch her and gently lay her on her side, not knowing what to do with the blade currently sticking out from her chest.

She doesn’t notice that time had indeed stopped around her, angels and demons frozen over mid-action as a flurry of green smoke engulfed them and circled around the two. Two neon green orbs fly over them and enters the circle and stops a couple of feet from Chaeyoung and Tzuyu before transforming into two familiar faces – Jeongyeon – who has finally reformed – and Dio, both donning the same horrified expressions at the bloody sight before them.

Chaeyoung never knew the feeling of pure anguish until now. The sight of her beloved holding on to her hands for dear life as she sputters out blood at every attempt to utter a word.

“N-no, Tzuyu, please don’t say anything. Just… stay still - FUCK!” Her hands are shaking in manic fear as she slowly pulls out the saber, making the angel wince at the sharp pain. More blood seeped throughout her cotton top, her hands searching for her best friend’s as she struggles with every inhale.

“Son Chaeyoung…” The wine-haired girl manages to let out, her voice hoarse and almost quiet. Chaeyoung has broken down into crying mess, her free hand making a futile attempt to cover the wound on Tzuyu’s chest – angel blood staining her hands.

“Hey, l-look at m-me…” The shorter girl does as she was told, tears streaming uncontrollably down her cheeks at the sight of her best friend’s silver irises returning to dark brown ones – the same ones she fell in love with and promised to protect and spend the rest of her life with.

“I don’t t-think I’m going to m-make it.”

“No, NO. Don’t say that! Tzuyu, please, just don’t. Don’t say that.” Here she is, the supposed all-powerful being, reduced to a whimpering, blubbering heap and spewing out frantic words at the piece of her soul crumbling right before her.

Tzuyu musters a small smile, willing her hand to reach over Chaeyoung’s face and cup her jaw; her thumb brushing against the girl’s cheek in a slow and gentle manner. As far as she’s concerned, this was more than a worthwhile end. She stares deep into Chaeyoung’s dark, glassy eyes and wills herself to say what she needs to.

_“I will never regret following your father and volunteering to be your guardian.”_

Albeit confused at the lack of movement from Tzuyu’s lips and the presence of her gentle voice in her head, she places her hand on top of Tzuyu’s on her cheeks and savors the dying warmth it radiates.

_“Being here with you, growing up with you… falling in love with you is the best thing I ever did.”_

Chaeyoung could feel it; Tzuyu’s dwindling life force as the angel mark on her forehead slowly fades to gray.

_“You are more than worth it. I love you. Always.”_

These were Tzuyu’s last words before her eyes slowly drift to a close, leaving Chaeyoung in a tremor of sobs as she clutches her best friend’s limp figure against her own.

Jeongyeon could only look on as she kneels on one knee, followed by her apprentice, as a sign of respect for the fallen guardian.

Not even a full minute has passed when the green fog begins to thin, signaling that Jeongyeon’s own protection spell is starting to lift. Dio looks worriedly at his mentor, a silent question evident on his eyes as Jeongyeon bites her lower lip, unsure of what to do next.

She looks once more at Chaeyoung’s direction, the latter’s heavy breathing and crying had stopped as she slowly and gently lowers Tzuyu’s body to the ground, her eyes filled with an emotion she has never experienced until today – rage.

Getting back up on her feet, Jeongyeon approaches the Nephalem as she takes a step away from the body and looks around them.

“My protection spell is not going to hold much longer, Chaeyoung. As soon as it lifts, time will flow again and they will resume the attack. What do w-“

“Lift it.”

The strange coldness in her tone stuns the Druid, making her flinch from where she stood.

“What do you mean? Are you sure? We can still-“

“Lift it. NOW.”

[PLAY](https://youtu.be/WvmAGte91iI)

Jeongyeon understood that there was no more debating against it. And so she does as she’s told, but adds one extra push to at least give them a head start with what’s about to descend upon them. She turns toward the horde, her hands beginning to move in a circular motion, she chants the lifting spell in her low voice and the smoke quickly descends to the ground and explodes into a loud thwack, catapulting the horde a few yards away from them.

“Chaeyoung, we-“

“Stay here with Tzuyu. Don’t leave her side.” The girl commands, taking a step forward and towards the legions of angels and demons that were still scrambling up to their feet. Jeongyeon does as they were told and rushes towards Tzuyu’s body, casting a smaller protective circle around the three of them.

Chaeyoung, on the other hand, stops walking; her tattoos beginning to burn a bright shade of purple as she gripped on her sword that has once again slid down from her left forearm. Burning rage filled her insides as she looks on the incoming horde, all here on blind orders of extinguishing her kind.

She lets them come – lets them get close enough.

In a drastic turn of events, Jeongyeon witnesses as Chaeyoung lets out a blood-curdling scream before her entire body is engulfed in purple flames, her eyes burning in the same lilac shade and mirrored Tzuyu’s silver irises.

Even the enemies find themselves momentarily stopping on their tracks as Chaeyoung zooms in on them in with such force. She conjures up her rose tendrils again, only this time they weren’t to pin the enemies down – it was to rip them apart, limb from limb.

Agonizing screams of pain filled the air, as huge chunks of the creatures were torn to shreds or came face-to-face with the sharp blade of the Nephalem’s flaming sword. She jumps, tumbles, kicks and punches her way into their ranks like they were nothing but bags of sand.

The snake tattoo on her left arm burn and a den of gigantic, venomous snakes emerge from the earth and begins attacking every living thing on its path – slithering and choking the life out of its victims in a matter of seconds.

She lets out her anger and despair with the purple fires she conjures and directs at the enemy, burning them alive. Those who were able to somehow survive the fire were simply obliterated by some unseen force that no doubt came from Chaeyoung herself.

A rampage is what this is. A bloody rampage that only showed a fraction of how powerful Chaeyoung is.

Seeing how powerful their opponent is, a faction of the angels and demons actually attempted to run back to the rift and flee.

In what felt like a supernova of Nephalem energy forming within the sun tattoo on her chest, Chaeyoung summons one final shockwave that rippled through every single demon and angel that has entered through the rift; each one falling dead on the dirt with eyes bearing only terror and dread.

[PLAY](https://youtu.be/KQNdZPPyPlk)

Empty. That was all Chaeyoung felt after that.

Despite the piles upon piles of enemies surrounding her, it didn’t relieve the feeling of the loss she just suffered. She couldn’t help but blame herself for being reckless, for being in this mess, for being born. If Tzuyu was still around, she knew she would have gotten scolded for even thinking about it.

But there wasn’t a Tzuyu anymore. No more life in the farm with a big library and work room.

No more raising cows and dogs, or her plans of proposing under the full moon on a warm summer night.

Lethargically, Chaeyoung trudges back to where Tzuyu’s body is; leaving the carnage behind her as she could only think about holding her in her arms.

Jeongyeon didn’t even need to lift the protection spell – Chaeyoung just walked right through it.

_Figures._ Jeongyeon thinks.

Knowing that the younger girl returned for the angel in her arms, Jeongyeon lifts Tzuyu’s head from her lap and lets Chaeyoung take over. The shorter girl carefully cradles Tzuyu’s head in her arms, caressing her cold cheeks with her right thumb.

“I’m sorry. I am so, so, sorry.” These were the words she uttered over and over again, like a record on an endless loop as her tears flowed across her cheeks once more. She feels empty and useless, she could have saved Tzuyu. But she didn’t.

She regrets not saying it back; regrets not telling her directly how much she loves her.

“You’re so dumb sometimes, you know that?” Chaeyoung mumbles in between sobs. “Always have to take care of me, don’t you?”

Looking at Tzuyu’s serene face, the perfect curve of her lips and the immaculate arch of her nose – she was indeed an angel.

And she would do anything to get her back.

A searing pain hits Chaeyoung’s left bicep, an empty patch of skin that she was saving for something – was now taken over by a silhouette of a giant bird with its wings spread out majestically and its tail seemingly on fire.

She looks closer as the black ink becomes clearer and more defined against her skin, and she recognizes what it is – a phoenix. Before she could mull over it even more, the outlines of the tattoo begin to shine a bright blue hue and runs down her veins, to the tips of her fingers that were rested right above Tzuyu’s wound.

She feels a different kind of energy surge inside her, it was calm and soothing. She watches with amazement as the blue light moves from her fingertips and towards Tzuyu’s wound, the blood that drenched her shirt disappearing back into the wound as if time was reversing and undoing the damage.

The two onlookers feel their mouths fall agape at the miraculous event happening right before their eyes. The color returning on Tzuyu’s cheeks, the wound closing up underneath Chaeyoung’s touch and her sharp inhale as her eyes shoot open, breathing heavily as if she was held underwater for a long time.

As the light dissipates, Chaeyoung feels tears falling again only this time, from disbelief and happiness.

“W-What happened?” Tzuyu mutters, still trying to get a hold of herself and her surroundings before locking eyes with Chaeyoung who held her so tightly as if too scared she’ll disappear again. The latter shakes her head, unsure of what happened either and she finds herself looking at Jeongyeon who had now taken a seat in front of them on the ground.

“Powers of resurrection, of course. Why didn’t I think of that?” The blonde playfully bonks her head against her palms, letting out a relieved smile at the two. “Sometimes I forget why you were such a threat to the gods.”

Chaeyoung could really care less right now, Tzuyu was here in her arms; alive.

The two naturally rest their foreheads together, hands intertwined as they relish this moment of miracle.

“I am so sorry, Tzuyu. I should have looked befo-“

“Hey, stop that. It wasn’t your fault.” The angel says with a gentle smile. “I’m supposed to protect you, remember?”

“I-I know that, but I can’t, Tzuyu. I can’t lose you again.” The shorter girl sniffles, burying her face against Tzuyu’s neck as the latter soothingly runs her hand on her back this time.

“And you won’t. At least I think you won’t.” Chaeyoung removes herself slightly from Tzuyu, looking at her with searching eyes.

“Right before you brought me back, I was walking in the dark. There was nothing around me, no light, no sound – no one. But then this blue light appeared before me and consumed me. Chaeng, I felt like I was being reborn into something new – something better.”

“Holy Hell.... You actually upgraded her to Archangel status.” Jeongyeon says in awe, looking back and forth between the two and then pointing at the more prominent angel mark on Tzuyu’s forehead but this time, with the additional center curve that only Archangels have.

“That means…?”

”I’m now invulnerable. Well, mostly.” Tzuyu gestures at Chaeyoung, the latter knowing full well what she meant but only focused on the fact that she was not only able to resurrect her best friend, but also give her more power.

“Well, that’s something I’m gonna have to write on the book.” Jeongyeon states, getting up from where she sat and offering her hand to the two.

Tzuyu lets her eyes wander at the sight around them as they stood. She can’t say she isn’t worried of the amount of bodies piled everywhere, nor is she not tempted to question the snakes that were now focused on them.

Sensing her cautious demeanor, Chaeyoung waves her left arm and wills the snakes to disappear into thin air.

“You did all this?” Tzuyu asks, taking a cautious step forward. Chaeyoung silently nods, now becoming aware of the damage she’s done. Then an idea hits her.

She walks up to Tzuyu and carefully reaches for her hand, the latter looking at her curiously. She didn’t have to say it, Tzuyu understood what she intended to say. So she steps out of the way, allowing Chaeyoung to get closer to all the fallen angels and demons that were scattered on the field.

[PLAY](https://youtu.be/0e6JepqoBlg)

She closes her eyes and tries to summon the same energies as she did earlier until she once again feels the burning of the phoenix tattoo on her arm and the blue light that flashes from her palms as she points them in front of her.

Doing this was a leap of faith, but in order to avoid the same thing happening again, she has to at least try.

The light grew brighter and brighter, rolling over every single body that it touches. Bodies of the fallen rise up in the air as their injuries retract, just like it did with Tzuyu. Angels and demons of all kind begin to awaken, all with a different, more enlightened twinkle in their eyes.

Soon, all that were vanquished were brought back and now stood in front Chaeyoung herself.

No one dared to move or speak, for they knew she was the one who brought them back.

Looking at the legions in front of her, Chaeyoung can’t help but feel jitterbugs creep up on her. It quickly goes away when she feels Tzuyu stand close to her side, their hands only slightly touching, but enough for Chaeyoung to feel the reassurance that she needed.

With a newly found confidence, she stands taller and speaks in a firm tone.

“I think I don’t have to tell you that I am the one that brought you back to life, and you may be wondering why I would when just now, not only did you murder my best friend but also threatened to take my life.” Whispers and murmurs spread in the crowd, all curious about the outcome of this.

“I know that most of you are aware of the defection of my parents, Lilith of the Burning Hells and Inarius of the High Heavens, from their respective sides. I also know that you are aware of the reason why.” She takes another deep breath before continuing on.

“This Great War – what good does it really bring all of you? For eons, you have fought and died, only to be reborn again to fight the same war over and over; is this what you really want? To lay waste on each other in a vicious cycle that never ends, for the same gods that refuse to entertain the idea of balance and peace among us?”

“What are we supposed to do? This is what we were created for, all that we were meant for.” An angel from the crowd steps forward, with her long blonde hair and soft features looking somewhat similar to Tzuyu’s.

“That is not true. We all have a choice. In fact, I made the same choice that got me here, Archangel Mina.” Tzuyu spoke this time, a look of recognition washing over the archangel as the former raises her saber in her hands.

“And now I am giving you all a choice; return to your respective sides and continue this endless conflict and this hunt for my head while I tirelessly fight back.” Chaeyoung, exuding the unexpected confidence of a true leader, offers a resolute look at the divine beings.

“Or join us. Join our side and put an end to this mindless war, one way or another, and finally live in balance amongst each other.”

“You are not without choice. You have the very right to have free will and live your lives in peace and harmony, just like what my parents wanted. And I will lead all of us into a new era of the divine.”

There was a hushed silence among the crowd. For a moment, Chaeyoung felt that she may have to draw her sword back out again. But instead, she is met by Archangel Mina herself, as she steps forward and making her decision to join her side.

She is immediately followed by factions of angels, weaving through the crowd.

The half-boar, half-man she struck earlier, suddenly morphs himself into a normal size and a rather handsome human form as he also took a step forward, effectively convincing the other demons from their previous lingering hesitance.

Chaeyoung herself senses the shift of energy in the air. She’s somehow succeeded.

Her eyes naturally gravitate to her best friend, their hands, now intertwined. They still have a long way ahead of them, a lot of trials they must champion in order to fulfill the prophecy.

And with each other, Chaeyoung was sure that she’s going to fight tooth and nail, whatever it takes.

[PLAY](https://youtu.be/EXauzZ-DdOk)

Looking at her legion of new comrades, Jeongyeon and Dio, and finally, Tzuyu – Chaeyoung is willing to put her all in this if that meant they all got to live in genuine peace.

This is her will.

And her will be done.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading this work.
> 
> If you were able to read last month's work in this series, you might have noticed a certain couple's cameo in this one.
> 
> The awesome cover art and character profile for this month is done by my teammate and an amazing Twice fan-artist, Dio (@AronDiolex on Twitter - follow him, he's really rad!). You may have seen him in this fic as well as Jeongyeon's young apprentice!
> 
> Please do drop a Kudos if you'd like, and comment (pls) its literally a writer's lifeblood haha
> 
> I'm also on Twitter @AJMinatozaki and on CuriousCat https://curiouscat.qa/AJMinatozaki
> 
> I'll see you guys soon.


End file.
